Matthew Behling

This album tries to utilize a high BPM dance party vibe to hide the fact that it is lyrically mediocre, generic, and creatively lacking. Just an album of mid-tier pop, void of personality or message. It’s not awful, per se, but certainly not up to the standards of an artist of her caliber. Closing track ‘Wonder’ and the dance/pop ‘Nirvana’ are the only things vaguely up to par with her past works, while the tragic 21 Savage collab ‘Gimme Gimme’, the repetitive ‘Lifetimes’ and the cringeworthy ‘Artificial’ come off as b-sides that should have been left on the cutting room floor. Basically an album of dance filler you’d hear in the background of an overrated trendy restaurant. Katy Perry is better than this project, which just feels like icy consumerism. Its only legacy will be as a bad album from a successful artist, along with Britney’s ‘Britney Jean’ and Janet’s ‘20 Y.O.’.

After Sweetner was released to mixed results, Ari follows it up 6 months later with her most personal and coherent album to date. Short and sweet with 12 tracks, this album has absolutely no filler. Every song on this album, if released as singles, could top the charts. Highlights include the space metaphor filled N.A.S.A., the deeply personal and heartbreaking Ghostin', the ode to too-high expectations In My Head, and the pure sass of Bloodline. This is the album where Ariana turned from singer into artist.

Not her best album. Don't get me wrong, some of her best songs are on here including God Is A Woman, Breathin', Every Time, and Goodnight N Go. But the whole of the album is littered with Pharrell Williams produced tracks that sound like they belong on a 15 year old Gwen Stefani record, and miss the mark completely. The two styles jump back and forth throughout the album leaving it uncohesive at best. Other songs like R.E.M. , and the title track Sweetener, start off promising and then fizzle out.